Construction begins on Setif LRT

A CEREMONY was held in Setif, Algeria, on May 8 to mark the official start of construction on the city's light rail network.

The first phase comprises two lines, one running 15.5km from the city centre to serve the eastern suburbs and the other running 7.2km south from the city centre to Ain Trick. The network will have 30 stations, seven with park-and-ride facilities, and peak services will operate at four-minute headways.

A joint venture of Alstom and Turkish construction company Yapi Merkezi was awarded a €380m contract last year to build the first phase, which is due to be completed in 2017.